This invention relates to an apparatus for transporting sheets in which a pile of a large number of sheets, positioned on edge in an upright position relative to the transporting direction, is separated into a group of a predetermined number of sheets from the foregoing pile of sheets. At the same time, the group of a predetermined number of sheets is pivoted to a laid position with the front surfaces thereof facing upward and the lower edges thereof facing forward. Each group of sheets is fed out of the apparatus in the laid position.
As for existing apparatus of a related type, U.S. Pat. No. 4,249,847 discloses a related device as shown in FIGS. 6-8. This device comprises a first conveyer b for transporting, in a transporting direction X, a pile of a large number of sheets on edge in an upright position thereon, and a tilting device g for tilting a transfer conveyer c which is disposed at the delivery end of the first conveyer b. When the first conveyer b is stopped, a conveying surface e of the transfer conveyer c can be raised above a conveying surface f, of the first conveyer b, and thereby cause a group of a predetermined number of sheets to separate from the remaining group thereof and at the same time cause the group of a predetermined number of sheets to pivot to a laid position with the front faces of the sheets facing upward and the lower edges thereof facing forward. A second conveyer h receives the group of the predetermined number of sheets in the laid position from the transfer conveyer c.
Thus, according to this existing conventional apparatus, when the pile of sheets a positioned in the upright position is transported to the delivery end d of the first conveyer b, and the conveyer b is stopped, the conveying surface e of the transfer conveyer c is raised by the tilting device g in the direction of arrow i shown in FIG. 8. The conveying surface e is then positioned higher than the conveying surface f of the first conveyer b, so that a leading group of a predetermined number of the sheets a is separated and pivoted from the remaining group of the pile of sheets a and at the same time the group of a predetermined number of sheets is brought to a laid position as mentioned above. Thus, a group of a predetermined number of sheets is obtained at each cycle of rise and fall of the transfer conveyer c by the tilting means g and conveyed to a second conveyer one group after another. Accordingly, the conveying surface e of the transfer conveyer c is lifted and lowered by tilting means g in relation to the conveying surface f of the first conveyer b each time a group of a predetermined number of the sheets a needs to be obtained. The tilting means g and the related apparatus results in an apparatus that is complicated and requires repeated controlling operations for lifting and lowering the transfer conveyer c simultaneous with the operations for stopping and resuming movement of the first conveyer b for obtaining each group of sheets a.